Friday, July 30, 2010

I took a couple pics yesterday as I was trying to figure out how to use my hot rollers (I've had 'em for years, and I can never seem to get the technique just right. I always end up with some goofy lumps.)

Thought it'd be fun to share, even though I look terrible straight out of bed with no makeup on. I'm not a "natural beauty" kind of girl. Not anymore, anyway.

Before (SHRIEK!)

During

After

Note: I got my hair to look decent for all of 10 minutes and then the curl just fell right out. I don't like putting any products in my hair. Can't stand the feeling, the smell, etc. Oh well.

It's been a crazy few weeks getting the house ready and dealing with the garage sale and aftermath and whatnot. I have NOT been the best mom. I have, however, TRIED to eke out a few moments of fun here and there with the kids. We need more, though.

However, this week, there was this one special moment. It was in those stretchable hours right before Hubby gets home from work. The ones when I'm totally worn out and ready for a reprieve. I had the boys out back and we were playing on the swingset and climbing in a tree.

At one moment, Jordan, with the sun at his back, shining through his ducky fuzz hair, ran toward me squealing with pure delight and it made my heart soar. I quickly raised the camera and snapped a photo. These ones almost never come out. He usually runs too fast, but I got sort of lucky this time and every time I look at this photo for the rest of my life, I'll remember this one moment of joy, with my tiny boy running toward me, so happy.

Monday, July 26, 2010

Well, we survived the garage sale. The weather was a little sketchy at times, and the crowds weren’t huge, but we were able to unload a lot of stuff and make a little change in the process. As soon as the remnants are carted off to Goodwill, we’ll be in good shape.

Preparing for the garage sale and getting rid of all that stuff got me thinking, though. Why didn’t we do this sooner?

It’s so nice to have the space that all this stuff was occupying. We obviously didn’t need it anyway, since much of it lived in boxes, or at least untouched, for all these years.

Same goes for repairing the doorknob hole in the wall, replacing that piece of siding that had blown off, fixing the front flower bed, and a bunch of other little tasks.

Why is it that we didn’t consider ourselves important enough to do it, just for us?

Why did we wait until it was time for other people to judge the house?

And that led me to think of other things, too. Why do people save “the good china” for very rare occasions, like Christmas dinner? Why are the good pieces of jewelry only worn once in a blue moon? Why does my husband dress so nicely for work, but look ironically homeless when he’s at home, with shirts full of holes and paint stains? Why do I live in gym clothes every day instead of getting dressed in something nicer, even if I’m not planning to leave the house?

Why isn’t every single day just as important as those special occasions for which we save the good stuff?

I guess I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Earlier in the summer, I was packing for a camping trip. In the storage room in our basement, I pulled out the old, mismatched silverware we always take camping. Then my eyes lit on a wooden box on my shelf of kitchen extras. It was a set of gold-plated silverware my Aunt Marcia had given me as a wedding shower gift.

The gold silverware had only been used maybe twice since I received it in 2001. Why?

So, with a little smile, I replaced the old mismatched stuff and I picked out enough pieces of the goldware and packed it into the camping tub. At camp, I surprised my men by setting the picnic table with plastic plates and gold silverware. Classy!

My husband gave me a strange look and asked why I had brought that, of all things.Because, I told him, it’s supposed to be for special occasions, and I couldn’t think of anything more special--anyplace I’d rather be--than camping with him and the boys.He liked that and we had fun eating with the goldware. After the camping trip, I didn’t pack it back into its box, either. We actually use it now. Why not?

Take a look around your home. What are you putting off? If you were going to sell your house, how would you spruce it up to make it more attractive to buyers? Don’t you think you deserve to enjoy those benefits as well? After all, it’s your life.

Every day is a special gift, and shouldn’t be seen as anything else.

So, go for it. Put on the good earrings and go weed your garden. Drink your wine out of the good crystal and don’t worry about breaking it. Put some of those really expensive bath salts into the tub and enjoy a good soak tonight. Or whatever.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Last night, shortly before sunset, there was this crazy cloud hovering over our house. It was casting an eerie orange light over everything. This wasn't your typical sunset lighting. It was *glowing*

I walked outside and it looked like I had a major suntan going on. The driveway, deck and roof were glowing and the neighbor's house looked orange. It was just really, really weird. It only lasted five to ten minutes, and I stayed outside looking at it pretty much the whole time.

I snapped a few photos. You can tell it looks weird, but the photos really don't capture the glow exactly as it was.

See how everything's kind of glowing orange, but the sun's not shining on it? For example, the neighbor's house, seen here, is actually a light blue color.

There was a patch of neat-looking mammatus clouds, seen here during the glow and then again after it went away.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Sorry about the lack of posting and all, but... get used to it! I've been doing garage sale prep and our house is listed. That + my 2 boys = an extremely busy, sore, tired mom!

The sale is tomorrow and Saturday and then whatever is left is going either to Goodwill or the consignment shop. I will be SO HAPPY when this sale is over. It's a huge thorn in my side. I remember why last time (8 years ago or something like that) I decided to never do a sale again. I just couldn't see hauling ALL this baby stuff away, though, without trying to sell some of it.

Anyway, it's not been fun around here and I've not been the nicest mom to my kids. But, kids are kids and Jordan cracked me up early yesterday morning. He found Logan's light-up sword that he got at a circus or something, and he was having a light saber duel against himself, using his reflection in our back door.

He had a good old time, and it was pretty cute.

Not so cute? Him crying until after midnight, when I had to get up at 4:40 a.m. Then, he's been de-diapering himself in his bed lately and then peeing all over the place. It's going to be Smartipants only from now on, since he can't get all the snaps undone!

Went for a run with a new friend this morning. It was cool out and the company was good. Running with someone else was different, but a nice change.

So, yesterday, Jordan was sitting on the living room floor playing with some blocks we keep in an old popcorn tin. I went into the kitchen to get a drink and heard Jordan start crying. I ran to see what was wrong and was greeted with this sight.

He had somehow managed to put not only his head into the tin, but also his arms. He was totally wedged inside.

I am SUCH a mean mom, because instead of dislodging him right away, I ran to get the camera first.

Friday, July 16, 2010

This post was written by Ghetto Gumby, a nomadic friend I hosted recently. He wrote up his post and it was my job to get the photos loaded up, and I've been so busy it kind of slipped my mind. Anyway, GG arrived on my birthday, June 16, and then headed up to the Mackinac area with us on our camping trip. He traveled on to Green Bay, Wisconsin, after he left here.

Here is his version of his visit.

Hi y'all. I'm Ghetto Gumby, or GG for short. I was born in Texas. My mom, Shauna Glenn, is an author and blogs at shaunaglenn.com. She decided to send me on a world tour this summer, and I've been having a blast.

I arrived in Michigan at Krystal's house on June 16, which happened to be her 34th birthday. However, since she's lame, I couldn't get her to go out. She kept saying something about needing a babysitter for the kids and I told her that's what duct tape and television is for, but she wouldn't go for it. Whatever.

As soon as I got there, her son, Logan, took me around to show me the house. Then he decided to serenade me on the electric guitar. It was awful. Can you see the pain on my face?

In fact, it was so bad, I decided to commit suicide. Now, it's an odd thing for sure, but I'm deathly allergic to cabbage, so I decided that would be the way to go. I managed to get into the fridge and was well on my way to "the light."

But then Krystal opened the door and found me. "Go away," I begged. "Just let me die."

But, of course, she didn't. Instead she decided to cheer me up, so she gave me a new hairdo

And then, after I begged her, she gave me a tattoo. I knew exactly what I wanted. You see, I missed my mom a lot, so I decided to get a "Peace, Love and Pinot Grigio" tattoo, which is how she signs her books. See?

So, here's the tattoo I got. It's on my butt.

We left for the camping trip and arrived at Wilderness State Park on Lake Michigan. It was so beautiful.

I had a great time playing on the beach and at the camp site. I drank a lot and *might* have passed out in a dump truck for a while. I don't really remember.

In Mackinaw City, I found the perfect shirt for my mom, but she hadn't sent any spending money along with me, so I didn't get to buy it for her.

Krystal was nice enough to make me a Ghetto version of the shirt when we got home, though, before I headed to Green Bay. That was sweet. She even cut the fabric from a part of her husband's old T-shirt that didn't have a pit stain on it.

I had a great time in Michigan and I'm really enjoying my world tour, but I can't wait to get home to Texas and tell my mom all about my adventures.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

I never really got into watching butterflies before, which is strange because I like to watch birds and look at flowers and butterflies are kind of like flying flowers, aren't they?

But I have this old hummingbird feeder on my deck. It needs to be replaced, so it leaks sugar water all over and attracts not only hummingbirds, but flies, bees, earwigs, ants and... butterflies! Then, my mother-in-law bought me a pretty butterfly bush for my birthday. I haven't planted it yet, so it's also on my deck, and I made a "butterfly pie" in an old pie tin with mud, salt and rotten fruit because I heard butterflies like it.

I have been getting a lot of butterflies to watch over the past week or so, and it's so fun! They're really hard to photograph because they're kind of shy and they don't sit still, but I went out yesterday and tried to get photos of a few of them. Some of them are blurry, but they're pretty anyway.

So, here are my fluttery friends.

This little guy was funny this morning. First, he stuck his head in the hole on the hummingbird feeder, as if he was checking it out before he drank from it.

Then he stuck his proboscis into the hole and sipped through his personal straw to get the good stuff.

Then, I got too close for comfort and he rolled up his proboscis and looked at me before fluttering away.

I wish I knew more about kinds of butterflies. Maybe I'll get a book or something. I don't know what to call them.

There's this colorful one.

and this black-and-blue one

And sometimes he hangs out with a monarch (I think) on the butterfly plant